- having regard to the Framework Agreement on Partnership and Cooperation between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of the Philippines, of the other part,

– having regard to the Second Universal Periodic Review by the UN Human Rights Council of May 2012, 66 of whose 88 recommendations were accepted by the Philippines,

- having regard to the statement of 3 September 2016 by the EEAS Spokesperson on the attack in Davao

– having regard to Rule 135 of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas the Philippines have ratified eight of the nine major human rights conventions, with the exception of the Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (CPPED), as well as having ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court in 2011;

B. whereas the Philippines has a high crime rate and faces a high level of corruption; whereas President Duterte, who took office on 30 June 2016, in his election campaign promised to stop crime, drugs and corruption in the country within three to six months;

C. whereas president Duterte enjoys a high popularity among the population, with a trust rating of 91% of the population at the beginning of his term;

D. whereas the “war on drugs” he proclaimed has been followed by the killing of over 700 suspected “drug pushers and users” by the police and over 1000 extrajudicial killings;

E. whereas the killings and arrests are surrounded by a lack of information and accountability, which contradicts his government’s order to promote freedom of information on the executive branch early in his term;

F. whereas on 3 September 2016 a bomb attack, claimed by Abu Sayyaf and affiliates, on a market in Davao City killed at least 14 people and wounded 70 more; whereas the Philippines’ armed forces continue a military offensive against IS-affiliated Abu Sayyaf militants in the southern Sulu province;

G. whereas after the attack the Philippines government has declared a “state of national emergency on account of lawless violence in Mindanao”;

1. Welcomes the government’s intention to reduce the high levels of crime and corruption in the country; is however deeply worried at the rigorous and non-transparent way this policy is carried out, and recalls the need for a proper and thorough investigation of all cases of extrajudicial killings, especially those implicating police, military personnel, and armed militias;

2. Encourages the Philippine government to continue fostering further progress in the elimination of corruption and the promotion of human rights, including the publication of the National Action Plan for Human Rights and to ensure the protection of human rights defenders, including land and environmental rights activists, trade unionists, indigenous leaders, and journalists and order thorough, independent, and impartial investigations into all cases of past crimes committed against them;

3. Urges the government to respect the Philippines’ legal obligations under core international human rights treaties;

4. Calls on the government to begin the process of ratification of other key international human rights instruments, including the International Convention on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICPPED);

5. Urges the government to adequately investigate all past cases of enforced disappearances, in line with the Anti-Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance Act of 2012;

6. Expresses its condolences to the relatives of the victims of the brutal terrorist attack in Davao City on 3 September 2016;

7. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the European External Action Service, the Member States, the Government and parliament of the Republic of the Philippines.